Cool Griffin spurs Clippers' victory

The Clippers' Blake Griffin dunks against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday at Staples Center. STEPHEN DUNN, GETTY IMAGES

LOS ANGELES – Over the past two seasons, when Blake Griffin would show emotion on the court, he’d usually do so with a frown or a scowl.

Wednesday in a big game with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Griffin kept his cool through an on-court scuffle, only to exult with a fist pump of celebration late in the fourth quarter of the Clippers’ 111-103 victory at Staples Center.

Continuing to show signs of growth in all areas, Griffin delivered a complete game, scoring 22 points, grabbing 12 rebounds, dishing out seven assists and nabbing three steals.

He slid over the court for loose balls and dive into photographers to keep possessions alive. Griffin even helped defend Kevin Durant, who needed to make 15 of 17 from the line to score his game-high 33 points.

But the biggest impact came when Griffin didn’t lose his cool.

Griffin and Serge Ibaka got their arms tangled underneath the basket, Ibaka appeared to throw Griffin to the side. Matt Barnes rushed towards Ibaka, shoving him in the chest.

Ibaka gathered and clinched his fist and cocked back to punch, but he never swung. After a lot of jawing, the play was reviewed and Barnes and Ibaka were both ejected.

Griffin was called for a technical foul.

It didn’t look like the Clippers were in for much of a fight early, though.

After starting the game on an 8-0 run, the Clippers offense sputtered while Oklahoma City sprinted its way to 33 points in the quarter. The Thunder lead grew to nine at halftime, before the Clippers’ defense keyed a big third-quarter run that changed the game.

Chris Paul had another huge game, handing out 16 assists to go with 14 points, and Jamal Crawford added 20 points off the bench.

In addition to Griffin and Paul, the Clippers’ other three starters finished with 10 points or more.

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